abstract:Philippe Rondot (born 5 October 1936) is a French retired general, formerly an important personality of the French intelligence. He worked for both the domestic intelligence DST and the foreign intelligence DGSE (traditionally rival services) and was councilor to several Defence ministers (either Right or Left-wing).
Mr de Villepin, Mr Sarkozy's chief rival on the right, has not denied that, as foreign minister, he ordered a covert inquiry into the allegations by General PhilippeRondot, a top spy then working for the defence ministry.
According to testimony leaked to Le Monde, a left-leaning newspaper, General PhilippeRondot, a retired top spy, told the inquiry that Dominique de Villepin, then foreign minister and now prime minister, had asked him to investigate Mr Sarkozy on orders from President Jacques Chirac.